Kristen Stewart: “keep them guessing”

Kristen Stewart was on The Today Show this morning promoting Twilight. At the very end of the interview, Savannah Guthrie asked her about whether or not she was back together with Robert Pattinson. It’s gross and uncomfortable, these questions, getting them out of your mouth. I know because I’ve had to do it. But this is what the story is. It’s the 5th Twilight movie and everyone seeing the movie will have read the books. Don’t pretend that you need to know how much Bella loves Edward. You already know. The story here is #ROBSTENISUNBROKEN. But still you’ll have the hardcore KSTEW MILITIA all indignant and whatever about personal information and how dare they go there when it should only be about her work ... aaaand the next minute they’re racing to click on the link that will take them to the brand new photos of Stewart and Pattinson holding hands.

So was Guthrie offside?

Well, it goes back to that apology. Kristen Stewart released a public apology for a private decision. And, as I said at the time, in offering that wide-reaching apology that was really only intended for one person, she opened the door for questions like these. She can’t take it back. Going forward then it’s about how Stewart, who’d previously been uncomfortable and notoriously allergic to discussing her personal life, will handle the new press realities.

Some of you think it’s rude and condescending. In your emails to me you’ve expressed your views that, given that she opened up her apology to the world, flipping off the people who want to know about her relationship like this isn’t exactly ... the most elegant way to go about answering the question.

Pro-Stewart people, obviously, are all RAH RAH RAH about her response. Like she’s an asskicker who f-ck you’d the media and YAY YAY YAY all day.

Me, I’m not sure she was intentionally being a sh-t. What I am beginning to believe is that she’s not a very effective communicator. You know she talks about books and about not being a standard starlet, more cerebral and profound than the others, and she’s real and authentic so she can’t, like, be trained because that wouldn’t be ...honest...? But are they mutually exclusive, being honest and being prepared? Readying yourself for certain unwelcome but perhaps inevitable situations, having a strategy on how to handle them gracefully -- is that necessarily inconsistent with staying true to yourself?